Fibre drums are barrel-like containers which are used to ship and store fluids. The advantages of a fibre drum are that it can hold a large volume of fluid, it is sturdy and resilient so as to be able to withstand the rigors of rough handling during transport, and if the fluid is of low viscosity, the contents can be removed either by pouring or pumping. However, because of the poor flow characteristics of high viscosity fluids a greater effort must be expended in unloading the fluid from the drums. One method which can be used is to heat the fluid containing drum, for as the temperature of fluid rises, its fluid viscosity decreases, thereby improving the fluid's flow properties. However, this method cannot be used where the fluid changes chemical composition upon heating. For these fluids, the only method heretofore available have been raking it or shoveling it out of the drum. However, these methods are time consuming and waste valuable manpower hours. Furthermore, shoveling or raking are wasteful because it is difficult to remove all of the contents from the drum.
Presently available are drums designed to solve a variety of unloading problems. Drums available from Greif Bros. Corp., Cullman, Ala., are of the kind described above, which permit the contents to be heated. The drum is placed into a pressure and heating mechanism having a plunger assembly. After heating to liquefy the contents, the plunger is lowered and pushed against the drum contents, melting the material. The plunger, which seals around the circumference of the drum, pumps out the contents of the drum. Greif Bros. Corp. also manufacturers drums which do not utilize heat in the unloading, but which employ a ram which exerts hydraulic pressure down upon the drum contents, forcing it out of the drum.